A huge inspiration of my hair designs will come from the Ermine portrait, I knew that this was my favourite portrait before I went to the National portrait gallery because of how striking it is, it is something that would be really inspiring to see in person but unfortunately it wasn't in the gallery.
This image is heavily symbolic the sword of justice is laid next to her, she is holding an olive branch to represent peace and she also wears the three brothers jewels she is dressed in all black to reinforce the seriousness of the portrait as it is connected to the proposed truce with Scotland it shows that she wants to be seen as peaceful, loyal, pure and truly regal.
The reason I find this image so inspiring is how powerful it is, it is almost like a warning in disguise, Elizabeth is flaunting her power and status but overshadowing it with peaceful undertones, you can see the extent of her wealth and status with her elaborate garments, hair and embellishments, she is completely adorned with precious jewels, a small ermine is by her arm which is a symbol of the nobility because of their pure white fur. The sheer size of her sleeves look almost masculine and intimidating like she is demanding surrender, approval or her way, and the black In the gown shows how deadly serious she is. I want to play around the colour scheme of this image, using black, gold, silvers with pops of red and orange, and also the textures, the fur of the ermine or by imagining the different textures or decedent fabrics that would have been imported to make this dress.
I really like the fact that her skin is whiter than the ermine's it almost shows that she is more pure than the animal even though they are represented to be the height of purity, its almost screaming her perception of self worth and her influential power over the people..
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